Document Type
Journal Article
Publication Date
3-20-2013
Journal
PLoS One
Volume
Volume 8, Issue 3
Inclusive Pages
Article number e-58493
Keywords
Brain--pathology; Persian Gulf Syndrome--pathology; Persian Gulf Syndrome--physiopathology
Abstract
Background
Gulf War exposures in 1990 and 1991 have caused 25% to 30% of deployed personnel to develop a syndrome of chronic fatigue, pain, hyperalgesia, cognitive and affective dysfunction.
Methods
Gulf War veterans (n = 31) and sedentary veteran and civilian controls (n = 20) completed fMRI scans for diffusion tensor imaging. A combination of dolorimetry, subjective reports of pain and fatigue were correlated to white matter diffusivity properties to identify tracts associated with symptom constructs.
Results
Gulf War Illness subjects had significantly correlated fatigue, pain, hyperalgesia, and increased axial diffusivity in the right inferior fronto-occipital fasciculus. ROC generated thresholds and subsequent binary regression analysis predicted CMI classification based upon axial diffusivity in the right inferior fronto-occipital fasciculus. These correlates were absent for controls in dichotomous regression analysis.
Conclusion
The right inferior fronto-occipital fasciculus may be a potential biomarker for Gulf War Illness. This tract links cortical regions involved in fatigue, pain, emotional and reward processing, and the right ventral attention network in cognition. The axonal neuropathological mechanism(s) explaining increased axial diffusivity may account for the most prominent symptoms of Gulf War Illness.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
APA Citation
Rayhan, R. U., Stevens, B. W., Timbol, C. R., Adewuyi, O., Walitt, B., VanMeter, J. W., & Baraniuk, J. N. (2013). Increased brain white matter axial diffusivity associated with fatigue, pain and hyperalgesia in gulf war illness. PLoS ONE, 8(3).
Peer Reviewed
1
Open Access
1
Comments
Reproduced with permission of PLoS One